Star Trek: Baby Blue
by IBegToDreamAndDiffer
Summary: Their son has Jim's eyes. See warnings inside.
1. Chapter One

**Author's Notes:**

**Pairing: **James T. Kirk/Spock

**Warnings: **MPreg

**Disclaimer: **Star Trek belongs to Gene Roddenberry, CBS and Paramount. I own nothing but the plot and make no money from this story.

* * *

><p>His eyes were blue and Spock stared at them in fascination. He was aware that human babies were often born with blue eyes, but Vulcans always had dark eyes; various shades of brown and black, certainly, but always dark. While this child was only a quarter Vulcan, the Vulcan genes had proven to be dominant; the baby had a thick head of black hair, pointed ears, pale skin and green blood. But his eyes were all Jim Kirk. Spock hoped that they stayed this shade of blue; it was illogical and he didn't plan on sharing it with anyone, but he thought it all the same.<p>

Jim sat at Spock's side, a goofy smile on his face, while Dr McCoy spoke with the Vulcan healer who had delivered the baby in the corner. The _Enterprise _was orbiting New Vulcan and most- if not all- of the crew were waiting to hear if the baby had been born healthy, and whether it was a boy or a girl. Spock had wanted to find out as soon as possible to plan accordingly, but Jim had wanted to be surprised. Spock almost always gave in to what his bondmate wanted.

'He's perfect,' Jim breathed reverently, and Spock felt his lips twitch upward.

'Indeed,' he agreed. He was aware that the baby wasn't perfect; no being was. But he was as close as could be, and in Spock's eyes he was breathtaking.

He was half Jim, half Spock. He may one day express an interest in science, or he could follow in Jim's steps and be more interested in command. He may stay out of Starfleet all together and choose a different career; teacher, writer, law enforcement officer, there were thousands of possibilities. He would be his own little person one day, and Spock's side felt tight when he realised that he would be there for all of that. He and Jim would raise this baby, would be his _parents_. One day Spock might see his son off to the Vulcan Science Academy, or help him move into a dormitory if he decided to study on one of Terra's many colleges.

'Spock,' Jim said softly and Spock tore his eyes away from their son's.

'Jim?'

'You're crying,' Jim stated.

Spock blinked slowly, and then shifted the babe so that he was settled into the crook of Spock's left arm. He reached up and gently touched his cheek. His fingers came away moist and cold, and Spock frowned slightly.

'It's okay,' Jim said, 'I kinda feel like crying myself. I mean... he's _real_, ya know?'

'Indeed,' Spock repeated. He had been aware of the child for months; from when he had been nothing more than a clump of cells. Spock's mind had become aware of the change, and he had sought medical advice before informing Jim that he was with child. But it hadn't truly prepared him for the amazing feeling of holding his son in his arms for the first time.

_Their _son. His and Jim's.

Spock lowered his hand so that he could clasp Jim's, both of which were sitting on the bed. Jim smiled at him and turned his hand over so they could slot their fingers together.

'He's perfect,' Jim said again, eyes gliding back to their son.

The as of yet named child was in the process of falling asleep. His head was resting on Spock's bare arm to allow a transfer of thoughts and feelings; more emotions at this point, as the child was too young to organise his thoughts. Spock was mostly receiving washes of hunger and warmth, and a curiosity to touch the light-haired man at Spock's right. Spock smiled faintly. The child already had Jim's curiosity, it seemed.

Spock would need to let Jim have skin contact soon so that the baby could form a mental bond with him. It would be difficult, but not impossible. As a psi-null human, Jim would need Spock's help to establish the connection and help the bond form. The baby could not do it alone.

'He needs a name,' Jim said, gaining Spock's attention.

'Yes, he does,' Spock agreed.

Jim hummed and flicked his eyes from his husband to their son, switching every minute or so; Spock was too tired to count properly. Natural childbirth was exhausting, and Spock would either need to meditate or sleep soon.

'Hey, can I sit?' Jim asked.

Spock looked at him and arched an eyebrow. 'You never have to ask, Jim,' he said.

Jim laughed and nodded as he stood. He let go of Spock's hand and Spock withdrew it, watching as Jim toed off his sandals and climbed onto the cool sheets. New Vulcan was a desert planet and just as hot as the original. Jim had been walking around in thin linen clothing, robes and sandals for the duration of their two week stay.

Jim settled against the wall and against Spock's shoulder. His warmth bled through Spock's thin white gown, making Spock's cooler skin warm.

'How'd your parents name you?' Jim questioned.

'I believe that Spock was the name of one of Surak's grandsons,' Spock said.

'You _believe_?' Jim asked with a small smirk.

Spock sighed slightly through his nose and Jim snickered quietly. 'Spock was the name of Surak's fourth grandson by his third son, Sural, and his t'hy'la, Syenn.'

'Huh,' Jim hummed. 'I still can't believe you're related to the Vulcan who made your species all logical.'

'I am a direct descendent,' Spock corrected.

Jim rolled his eyes. 'Yeah, yeah. Anyway, are we giving this little guy a Vulcan name or a Terran one? Or we could name him something weird.'

Spock scowled lightly and Jim laughed again; he kept it quiet, though, not wanting to wake the baby. Spock had felt their son slip into sleep a few seconds earlier.

'Okay, nothing weird,' Jim grinned. 'Any thoughts?'

'No,' Spock admitted. He had not thought of a name, because a part of him had been worried. Spock had already lost his mother; a small part of him had been terrified that he would lose the baby, despite being in perfect health and aboard a ship with the best medical officer in Starfleet. Dr McCoy had been perfect throughout Spock's pregnancy, apart from a few jokes here and there about Jim settling down and "knocking that damn hobgoblin up". He had also made references to buns and ovens which Spock still didn't understand.

Jim smiled gently. He had been aware of Spock's fears and have always talked him through them, or held him at night after Spock had a nightmare, both of their hands clasped over the swell of Spock's stomach. He didn't tease either now, simply leaned over and pressed a warm kiss to Spock's temple.

'Are there any names you can think of?' Jim asked. 'I only know your, Sarek, Surak, and the healer's name, T'Mai.'

'T'Mai is traditionally a female name,' Spock murmured. His gaze had drifted back to the baby, so he missed Jim's fond eye roll.

'Do all male Vulcan names start with an S?' Jim asked.

'Traditionally, yes,' Spock said. 'And most female names start with a T. Not always, but 99.7% of the time, yes.'

'So a name beginning with S,' Jim mused. 'S, S, S... Sss... Sim... S'Jim... Sames...'

'Please stop adding an S to your own name, Jim,' Spock interrupted.

Jim huffed a laugh and settled back further against the wall, slouching slightly at Spock's side. 'Sorry,' he said. 'I just can't think of anything.' He looked past the Vulcan at their son, taking in the delicate pointed ears, the green-tinged lips, the messy black hair that wouldn't be cut for some time. Most Vulcans had their child's hair cut at one year to signal their transition from baby to child. Spock had the overwhelming urge to let the baby's hair grow out, or perhaps cut it short so it spiked up like Jim's.

Spock followed his mate's gaze and once again felt his heart swell in his side. This was real. After eleven months their child was finally here, in Spock's arms. They had already converted Spock's old room on the _Enterprise _into a nursery and bought everything they needed. They were staying with Sarek and Elder Spock for a few weeks; both of the older Vulcans had expressed joy- even _Sarek_- when Spock had announced his pregnancy, and they wanted to get to know the new addition to the House of Surak before Spock and Jim left on the _Enterprise _once more.

Spock wondered if his counterpart had been waiting long, because it was at that moment that the door to the hospital room slid open, admitting Elder Spock- or Ambassador Selek, as he now went by- as well as Sarek and his new wife T'Rin.

T'Rin was pregnant with twins, a fact that still made Spock uncomfortable. His father had re-bonded to both help his mind recover from the loss of Amanda, and to help repopulate the Vulcan race. Spock knew that his father respected and was fond of T'Rin, but didn't know if his father loved her. He had loved Amanda, of that Spock had no doubt. Spock wasn't truly prepared to speak to his father about Sarek's new wife, so neither broached the subject all that often when they communicated.

'Spock,' Elder Spock said, eyes and wrinkled face both warm. He smiled more than Spock did. He had spent more of his life living with humans than Spock had, and had been bonded to his Jim Kirk for many years. Spock wondered if _he _would show more emotion after a lifetime with Jim.

'Selek,' Spock responded.

Elder Spock's eyes moved to the baby, and his entire demeanour softened. There was pain there as well; Spock detected it in his counterpart's eyes. Elder Spock wasn't fertile; a by-product of his mixed heritage. Unlike Spock, who had been informed at nine years of age that he was both fertile and a carrier. Both Spocks had wondered why they were different in that manner; their universes should have been the same up until the day of Jim's birth.

'Would you like to hold him?' Spock asked his older self.

Jim, Sarek and Elder Spock all looked at him in surprise, which was understandable. Spock had mixed feelings about his counterpart. He could never bite down the sting of jealousy that shot through him when he saw Elder Spock and Jim conversing like long-lost friends. Jim was _his _t'hy'la, and the very primitive side of Spock always wanted to convey that when the three were together.

'I believe that Jim should hold him first,' Elder Spock said, amusement flashing in his eyes. 'He looks ready to jump out of his skin.'

Spock frowned at the unfamiliar saying, while Jim said, 'I am not.'

Elder Spock just smiled lightly, and Spock turned to his bondmate. 'Jim?'

Jim huffed. 'Okay, so I wanna hold him. Can you blame me?'

'Of course not,' Spock said. He sat up slightly, holding back the wince when his lower body throbbed in pain.

Spock managed to pass the baby over without waking him, and watched as Jim's entire demeanour softened. He sniffed once, twice, before mumbling, 'I'm not crying.'

'The birth of your first child is a truly emotional moment,' Sarek spoke, drawing Jim's attention. 'It is okay to cry, James.'

'I know,' Jim smiled slightly. 'Did you cry when Spock was born?'

'No,' Sarek said, 'though I did faint when Amanda informed me that she was pregnant.'

Jim snorted and Spock looked at his father in surprise. Elder Spock didn't seem shocked.

'I nearly fainted when Spock told me,' Jim admitted, 'but Bones grabbed me and helped me sit. Then Uhura laughed at me when she found out.' He gasped suddenly and all eyes turned to the baby, just in time to see him come out of a yawn. He blinked his eyes open and they focused on Jim's, blue meeting blue.

'Fascinating,' Sarek mused.

'I have never seen a Vulcan newborn with such light eyes,' Elder Spock agreed.

'He will be just like his father,' Spock almost sighed, earning amused looks from the other three.

T'Rin, who had so far remained silent a few steps behind Spock, said, 'It will be odd, if he keeps the eye colour, but quite interesting. I am curious as to why blue was the dominant eye colouring in the child's genetics, Spock.'

Spock glanced up at her and T'Rin tilted her head, still studying Jim and Spock's son. Her right hand was resting on the bump that showed her own children- Spock's half-siblings.

Jim hummed softly and then his thoughts drifted over Spock's mind; _She's thinking about her own kids. So much for "Vulcans don't have emotions"._

_You learned long ago that that was untrue, t'hy'la, _Spock responded.

Jim threw him a wink and went back to looking at the baby. 'He still needs a name,' the captain said.

'You have not decided on one?' Sarek asked.

'No,' Spock said.

'Spock said you named him after one of Surak's grandsons?' Jim questioned.

'Indeed,' Sarek replied. 'Amanda expressed a liking for the name and I saw no logical reason to not use it.'

'I was named after my granddad,' Jim said. 'Maybe we should keep with tradition and use a family name.'

Sarek quickly and effortlessly listed all of Surak's grandsons; Se'Lrc, Starn, S'Relb, Spock, and Soren.

Jim could only pronounce two of the names without getting an adorable nose wrinkle from Spock- Spock didn't understand how his show of distaste could be considered adorable, but Jim had always been an illogical human.

They discussed a few more names, but Spock noted that Jim kept going back to Soren; he would glance at their son, eyes soft, and Spock shared a look with his older counterpart. Elder Spock smiled slightly and nodded.

'I believe that we should name him Soren,' Spock said.

Jim jumped slightly. 'Yeah?' he asked, eyes bright and a grin already spreading across his face.

Spock allowed his own lips to tilt up. 'Yes,' he said.

'Okay then,' Jim beamed. 'Soren Grayson Kirk.'

Spock's eyes widened and both Sarek and Elder Spock looked surprised, too. Jim glanced around at them all before huffing.

'What?' he said. 'I like it. And we humans usually have three names. Plus people always pronounce S'chn T'gai wrong, so I figured Kirk would be easier...' he trailed off when he saw Spock's face. 'Uh... that's okay, right?'

'Jim...' Spock said slowly, then had to breathe in deeply to keep his words steady, 'I believe that Soren Grayson Kirk is a logical name.'

_Thank you, _he added silently.

_You're welcome_, Jim responded.

'So on New Vulcan he can be S'chn T'gai Soren, right?' Jim asked aloud.

'Or S'chn T'gai Kirk Soren,' Elder Spock mused.

'Wow, what a mouthful,' Jim said, nose scrunching up. 'S'chn T'gai Soren is fine with me. Spock?'

'Indeed,' Spock said, earning a laugh from his bondmate. Spock's body chose that moment to remind him that he was exhausted, and that only 2.4 hours ago he had given birth to a child. He yawned and saw Jim looking at him with fondness, while Sarek and Elder Spock were already getting ready to leave.

'Sleep, my son,' Sarek said when Spock looked at him, 'we will converse tomorrow.'

'I shall return also,' Elder Spock said.

'And you can hold him,' Jim grinned at the old Vulcan.

Elder Spock bowed his head and he and T'Rin followed Sarek from the room.

Now that they were alone, Dr McCoy wandered over to join them. 'Okay, time for some rest,' he ordered gruffly. Usually Spock would argue just for the sake of arguing- though he denied that he did it every time Jim asked- but he _was _tired, and he wanted to rest before Soren woke wanting to be fed.

He nodded and settled down without complaint, moving the pillows until he was comfortable. Jim slid from the bed to settle in his seat once more, Soren in the crook of his arm.

'I can stay here, yeah?' Jim asked McCoy.

The doctor snorted. 'Like I could pry you away from your hobgoblin,' he grumbled. 'Or your baby hobgoblin,' he added, glancing at Soren. 'Picked a name yet?'

'S'chn T'gai Soren for New Vulcan's records,' Jim told his best friend. 'On Earth he'll be Soren Grayson Kirk.'

McCoy nodded. 'Good; a name I can pronounce. I'll be writing it all the goddamn time when he gets older, I just know it.'

'Not if he takes after Spock,' Jim said.

'And if he finds his bondmate he'll act exactly like Spock and make my hair fall out,' McCoy complained.

Jim laughed and Spock smiled as his eyes slid shut. He had planned to say goodnight to Jim and Soren- to kiss them both before he let his body relax. But his mind had other ideas and was already pulling him under. He was asleep before Jim could tease the doctor further, and his dreams were filled with the future; of Jim and Soren playing Terran sports, and of Spock teaching Soren the stars.

The most prominent dream was of the three of them enjoying a picnic at night in Iowa, in one of the fields of Jim's childhood home. Jim would cook. Spock would map the stars for them. And Soren would laugh loudly, never restricted by his Vulcan heritage.

Spock's small, soft smile remained fixed to his face, even in his sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I wanted to write baby Jim/Spock so I did. And that's that.

{IBegToDreamAndDiffer}


	2. Chapter Two

Now, Scotty was used to weird things happening down in engineering; when you work on the _Enterprise_, you get used to weird. That's not to mention the things Keenser got up to. But even after four years, Scotty still had a mild heart attack every time he looked up from his work to find a pair of startling blue eyes staring at him from behind a nest of thick, messy black hair.

Scotty bellowed out a few cusses as he landed on his ass, and the little quarter Vulcan grinned at him from where he was perched atop a box of parts.

'Hey, you aren't supposed to be up there, you damn elf!' Scotty scowled.

It was a term of endearment that Dr McCoy had started; now most of the crew referred to Soren Grayson Kirk as an elf. Soren seemed to like it, and Captain Kirk grinned at his bondmate every time Commander Spock sighed.

'Sorry, Mr Scott,' Soren said and slid down from the box, landing gracefully on his feet. The four-year-old had Commander Spock's grace but Captain Kirk's penchant for trouble; it made for a very quick-footed young child who often got into anything and everything he wasn't meant to.

'What are you doin' down here, lad?' Scotty asked as he want back to fixing the replicator. It only spat out coffee and small snacks for the engineers when they were working double shifts, but it was still very much needed. Most of the crewmen inhaled caffeine when working late.

'I was bored,' Soren told him, head tilted as he watched Scotty work. 'Sa-mekh is working in Science Lab 2 and Dad is working Beta shift on the bridge.'

'And who's supposed to be watchin' you?' Scotty asked.

Soren flashed him a grin. 'Nurse Chapel.'

Scotty sighed. Poor lass was probably tearing her hair out trying to find Soren. He was good at slipping away from his babysitters. And he'd already learned how to hack into the _Enterprise's _computers to ensure that it couldn't pinpoint his location.

'You know not to go runnin' off by yourself, laddie,' Scotty said, waving a screwdriver at the Vulcan. Soren grinned. 'Don't give me that look, Mr Soren,' Scotty added.

Soren pouted and scuffed his booted foot against the floor. 'I was bored,' he murmured. 'Nurse Chapel is boring. I don't want to read picture books or play with toys.'

Scotty chuckled lightly at that. Damn boy was too smart for his own good. Which wasn't surprising, given who his fathers are. 'So you fancied yourself a look at the _Enterprise's _engines?'

Soren nodded and stepped closer, footsteps barely making a sound. 'What are you doing?' he questioned.

Scotty quickly explained how the replicator had started mixing up some of the ingredients used for sandwiches and soup. Soren asked if it was the processor chip needing to be inspected and changed, and when Scotty showed the boy that he'd already swapped it out, Soren frowned. Then he sat on the floor beside the table Scotty was using and simply stared.

'Alright, lad?' Scotty asked after a few minutes of silence.

Soren tilted his head slightly before asking if he could take a look. When Scotty nodded, Soren let himself be picked up so that he was standing on Scotty's seat. Scotty watched as the lad ducked his head and pushed his little fingers into the replicator's innards. He started tinkering away and Scotty smiled. He trusted the lad not to hurt himself, so went to the replicator that had been brought in while the broken was being fixed. The engineer made himself a cup of coffee and had only just swallowed his first mouthful when Commander Spock entered the break room.

'Soren.'

He didn't yell. Scotty had only heard him yell once, and that was when Commander Spock had chased Khan down to exact his revenge; the footage had played on the news for weeks before Starfleet could stop it. Instead Commander Spock simply came to a stop beside his son and clasped his hands behind his back.

Soren had frozen at the sound of his sa-mekh's voice. Now he slowly slid his hands from the replicator, shuffled on the seat, and faced the older Vulcan.

'Sa-mekh,' he murmured.

Commander Spock said, 'You were supposed to stay in medbay with Nurse Chapel until your father arrived to collect you at 1905.'

'Yes,' Soren agreed, 'but-'

'Sa-fu,' Spock interrupted. Soren glanced up at him and Scotty saw Commander Spock raise an eyebrow. Soren wilted slightly under the expression and then murmured something in Vulcan, which made Spock tilt his head. 'Punar-tor,' he responded before holding a hand out.

Soren sighed but let his sa-mekh help him off of the chair.

'Soren, your father and I must know where you are at all times,' Commander Spock stated. 'And if we don't, we must know that you are in the care of someone we trust. Is that understood?'

'Yes, Sa-mekh,' Soren mumbled.

'You will cease running away from the people your father and I trust your care to.'

'Yes, Sa-mekh.'

'Soren.'

Soren bobbed his head once, and Scotty saw a faint flush of green spread across his cheeks.

Commander Spock exhaled sharply through his nose. 'You are too much like your father,' he commented more than complained. Scotty heard the faint amusement underlying his words and smiled into his coffee.

'That's what Sa'mekh'al Selek always says,' Soren said.

Spock's lips twitched. 'And Sa'mekh'al Sarek?' he questioned.

Soren grinned. 'He agrees.'

'I see,' was all Spock said. He then turned to Scotty. 'I apologise for Soren's interruption, Mr Scott.'

'The lad was no trouble, sir,' Scotty replied. 'He's just curious, is all.'

'Indeed,' Spock said, 'and that is the problem.'

Scotty grinned. Captain Kirk had a habit of being _curious _about things, and then usually landed himself in a whole heap of trouble. It wasn't surprising that he and Mr Spock were worried about Soren. Scotty still remembered the time Soren had found his way into the medbay's ventilation system. Lad had only been one.

'Are you going to tell Dad that I was bad?' Soren asked.

Commander Spock glanced down at his son. 'Yes,' he stated.

'But why?' Soren said. 'Please don't tell him, Sa-mekh, I promise not to do it again!'

'That is what you said last time,' Spock said.

Soren pouted.

Spock held his hand out and Soren took it again. 'Apologise to Mr Scott,' Spock ordered.

'I'm sorry for interrupting, Mr Scott,' Soren said, looking up at the engineer. 'I promise to only come down when you say I can.' Commander Spock cleared his throat lightly. 'And when Dad and Sa-mekh say that I'm allowed,' Soren added.

'Aye, no problem, elf,' Scotty said with a smile.

Soren giggled into his free hand and Spock raised an eyebrow at them both. 'Come along,' he said to Soren and started leading him towards the door.

'Sa-mekh, wait!' Soren gasped. Spock paused and tilted his head as his son raced back to the broken replicator. Soren grabbed Scotty's PADD and quickly typed something out before setting it back down. He then walked back to Commander Spock and said, 'Ready.'

He waved wildly at Scotty as his sa-mekh led him from the room and Scotty waved back, smiling. He liked the lad- the entire crew did- and it was always a pleasure having him down in the engines of the _Enterprise_.

Scotty finished his coffee before going to take another crack at the replicator. He'd been working for less than a minute when he realised that the touch screen had been pulled out. Frowning, Scotty glanced at his PADD, wondering if the lad had written down just why he'd done it.

Scotty laughed when he read Soren's note;

_Mr Scott, the touch screen is broken. A simple replacement is needed and then the replicator will work perfectly. Have a nice day – Soren Grayson Kirk_

Scotty chuckled again and opened up a new message. The Quartermaster was in charge of all equipment on-board the _Enterprise_, and it would only take a few hours for the woman to get a replacement part sent down from storage.

With that done, Scotty sent a message to Soren;

_Thanks, laddie – LtCdr M. Scott_

Seconds later he received a reply;

_You are welcome, Mr Scott – Soren Grayson Kirk_

With an amused smile, Scotty left the replicator where it was and when hunting for Keenser; he was sure that there was something else that needed fixing before his shift started.

* * *

><p><strong>Sa-mekh – <strong>**father**

****Sa-fu – ******son**

****Punar-tor – ******accepted**

****Sa'mekh'al – ******grandfather**

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Eh, I dunno. I just had the image of Soren and Scotty tinkering on stuff together, so I wrote a drabble. I'm not sure if I'll write more set in this 'verse. If I do I'll post it here. Actually, if you have any prompts for this 'verse, feel free to share them; I like working on small, random stuff while I'm trying to figure out my bigger stories.

{Dreamer}


	3. Chapter Three

**Prompt:** How about Soren's first day with other children? Or him meeting his t'hy'la as a teen?

**From: Ishtar205 **on AO3

* * *

><p>Soren Grayson Kirk was six-years-old and, for the first time in his life, he was going to spend the entire day with other children. Soren had met children before, of course. There were a few younger children who lived with him on the <em>Enterprise<em>. Ensign Matthews and Lieutenant Paver had a three-year-old daughter named Millie who Soren was allowed to teach little kid games to. But she was too small to play a lot so, for the most part, Soren spent his time with adults; his fathers and his many aunts and uncles and the crew.

Sa-mekh had explained that the _Enterprise _needed upgrades and, as the first five-year mission had been completed with excellent results, the crew was going to spend an entire year, perhaps more, on Earth. Sa-mekh wanted to travel to New Vulcan in a few months and show Soren the Vulcan Science Academy. Until then, Soren would finally be attending what Americans called "Elementary School".

Soren... wasn't sure how to feel. His dads and Aunt Nyota and Uncle Bones and Mr Scott made sure that Soren learned what he had to learn to graduate school and one day perhaps join Starfleet or the VSA. Soren had been told that he was too young to know what he wanted to do with his life, but he'd already decided; he wanted to learn new languages and travel and teach little kids who couldn't afford to travel themselves. He was fluent in Standard English and Vulcan, and Aunt Nyota was teaching him Romulan and Klingon. She said Soren was good with languages and accents. It made Soren's chest swell with pride every time.

Dad had explained that Soren's age meant that he should be starting First Grade, but the private school he was going to attend had sent a bunch of tests for him to take and they'd decided that he was "gifted" and had placed him in Third Grade. That meant that his classmates would be eight or nine, and Soren was worried that they'd tease him because he was younger. Sa-mekh had told him that if he felt uncomfortable he could quit and come home, but Soren wanted to go. He wanted to be like Dad, who'd attended Earth school when he was a kid. Soren would at least try.

Also... Soren wanted friends. Mr Scott and Mr Chekov and Mr Sulu were his friends, but they were grown-ups. They worried about adult stuff and didn't want to play sehlats or dragons or pretend that they were flying away from angry Klingons trying to blow up the _Enterprise_. Soren hoped that his classmates wanted to play.

Soren had to wear a uniform and he eyed himself critically in the mirror in his fathers' room. The mirror was as big as Dad and Sa-mekh and Soren turned slowly to look at himself from every angle. His shorts were stiff and grey, his shirt a light green with a matching darker green jacket. His shoes were hard and made of fake leather; the other kids would be wearing real leather, but Soren was a vegetarian and didn't like the thought of wearing animals on his feet. Luckily Sa-mekh had found an alternative for him.

Soren hummed to himself and pushed his bangs from his eyes. His hair was too long and kept sticking up everywhere or falling in his face, covering his pointed ears. Soren wondered if there'd be other aliens at school, or if they'd all be human. Would they tease him for being different?

'Soren?'

Soren jumped and turned to see Sa-mekh standing in the doorway. Since returning to Earth, Sa-mekh had started wearing Vulcan clothing; robes with stiff collars or jackets, clothing that reminded Soren of Sa'mekh'al Selek and Sa'mekh'al Sarek. Soren missed them.

'Are you well?' Spock asked and entered the room, coming to stand beside Soren. He was very tall, and Soren wondered if he'd be that tall one day. Dad and Selek and Sarek were all tall, too.

'Yes, Sa-mekh,' Soren said and looked back at the mirror. He wasn't used to wearing shorts. He usually wore cotton pants and shirts, or jeans and brightly coloured t-shirts that Dad ordered over the 'net for him or had replicated.

'Are you sure?' Spock asked and Soren nodded. 'If you feel uncomfortable at all today, do not hesitate to call your father or myself,' Spock added.

'I know, Sa-mekh,' Soren said. 'I have my communicator and I'll call if I want.'

'Good,' Sa-mekh said. He bent down to brush his fingers through Soren's hair, and Soren giggled when Sa-mekh pulled his fringe up. It made him look like Dad, only Soren's hair was black like Sa-mekh's. Sa-mekh's hair was always perfectly straight unless Dad messed it up. Dad liked messing it up, and he and Soren always giggled when Sa-mekh scowled at them.

'Are you ready?' Sa-mekh asked, and Soren nodded, took one last look at his reflection, and allowed Sa-mekh to lead him from the room. Dad was waiting in the living room, sprawled out over the large, comfy couch. He was wearing his black instructor's uniform, which Dad had spent hours wearing the day before; he kept saying it was comfier than his dress uniform. Sa-mekh seemed to like it, 'cause he'd blushed a whole lot whenever Dad walked past him wearing it.

Soren heard his sa-mekh huff slightly under his breath, and Dad heard it, too, because he tilted his head up and grinned brightly.

'Look at you, little man,' Jim beamed.

Soren smiled shyly and spread his arms, twirling to show his dad his new uniform.

'I'm kinda glad we decided on a private school,' Jim said. 'I'm not sure you own enough clothing for every day of the week.'

'That is your fault,' Spock said.

'What?' Jim spluttered, making Soren snicker. 'How?' he demanded.

'You insist on letting Soren wear casual clothing when you work together in engineering,' Sa-mekh said. 'If you would simply buy him appropriate clothing, or replicate a uniform, he would not destroy so many t-shirts and pants.'

Jim poked his tongue out and Soren giggled again. Sa-mekh scowled at both of them and Soren and Jim both said, 'Sorry,' at the same time. Spock sighed softly but his lips were twitching upward, so Soren knew that they weren't really in trouble.

'Can I have a uniform when we go back home?' Soren asked. 'I want a red shirt and a gold shirt and-'

'Yeah, yeah, kiddo,' Jim interrupted with a smile, 'we'll get you your own little uniform.'

'Not _little_,' Soren huffed, crossing his arms. 'I'm almost _eight_, Dad.'

'You just turned six,' Spock said from where he was pulling on his Vulcan jacket, the collar zipping all the way up to his neck, 'so you are, in fact, _almost seven_.'

Soren rolled his eyes and Dad winked at him and reached up to ruffle his hair.

'_Daad_,' Soren whined, because Sa-mekh had _just _finished making his hair nice and now it was messy- Dad had _ruined _it!

'Sorry, sorry,' Dad chuckled. 'Come here.'

Soren let himself be pulled forward and grumbled a bit as Dad brushed his hair with his fingers. Soren didn't like combs; they felt funny on his scalp, so Dad and Sa-mekh always used their fingers. It was why Soren's hair was always messy. Well, that and genetics. Sometimes Dad called him Harry Potter, which Soren didn't really understand because his fathers claimed that he was too young to read the old Terran novels.

He was _almost eight_, no matter what his sa-mekh said.

'Come on, short stuff,' Dad said when he was done, patting Soren on the back. 'Ready for your first day?'

'Yeah!' Soren cheered, and Jim smiled at him as he and Spock ushered Soren from the apartment and into the car Starfleet had given them for their shore leave.

{oOo}

San Francisco was big and bright and always a bit cloudy. Soren found it fascinating; it was so very different from all the planets he'd visited with his parents and the crew of the _Enterprise_. Soren would never admit it, but New Vulcan's skyline was his favourite. He liked the warm orange sky and thick, warm sand beneath his feet. He liked Sa'mekh'al Selek's small mud house and Sa'mekh'al Sarek's big concrete house. He knew that Sa-mekh and Dad liked New Vulcan, too, but Dad was from Earth and it'd always be home. Soren thought of the _Enterprise _as home.

There was a lot of traffic but they reached Soren's new school with plenty of time to spare- at least that's what Dad said, while Sa-mekh murmured about Dad always being late to everything and Soren peered out the tinted windows at the big buildings and grounds that were surrounded by a large iron fence.

The Triskele School seemed okay, and there were kids everywhere; some younger than Soren, some much older. Soren saw a few who had to at least be teenagers, and thought that he probably should have paid more attention when Dad and Sa-mekh had spoken to him about the school.

Jim parked the car in the private parking area and Soren saw men dressed in dark blue uniforms checking all the cars that pulled in. 'Who are they?' he asked, leaning over Spock's seat.

'Security guards,' Spock said. 'Almost all of the children attending this school come from wealthy families.'

Soren frowned. 'Are we wealthy?'

Jim snorted, and Spock said, 'We are.'

'Your sa-mekh's family is wealthy,' Dad corrected. 'He's from the House of Surak.'

'The Vulcan who made our people logical and better,' Soren piped in, earning nods from both his fathers. He smiled, pleased that he'd remembered that.

'Your father is also fairly wealthy,' Spock said as Jim turned the car off. 'He has been published in many journals and awarded many medals that come with cash prizes.'

'Your family's, like, Vulcan _royalty_,' Jim huffed.

'Really?' Soren asked, eyes wide. He started bouncing on his seat, pulling against his seatbelt. 'Am I a prince, Sa-mekh?'

'No, Soren,' Sa-mekh said, making Soren pout. 'We simply come from an influential family.'

Dad turned around in his seat to smile at Soren. 'Sa-mekh's the heir to the House of Surak and so are you, little man. Do you know how many Vulcan families want to bond you to their little girls when you turn seven?'

Soren wrinkled his nose at the thought. He knew why Vulcan children were bonded, but his fathers had promised that he wouldn't be. While Soren was a touch-telepath like his father, he wasn't powerful enough to need an anchor; Sa-mekh, Dad, and his grandfathers were enough for his mind to develop healthily. Plus, Soren wanted to find his t'hy'la. He knew that, statistically, his odds weren't good; it was rare for a full-blooded Vulcan to find his t'hy'la, let alone a quarter-Vulcan. But Spock had found his t'hy'la, and Soren was sure that he'd find _his_, too.

'Come along, Soren,' Spock said, and Soren realised that his dads had climbed out of the car and were waiting for him.

Soren quickly scrambled from the back seat and reached back in for his backpack. It was big and had pictures of dragons on it and held Soren's lunch, his communicator, his PADD, and even some pens and notebooks. Like his Dad, Soren liked drawing on paper. It was fun and he liked watching the ink bleed through the thin white sheets.

'Do you have everything?' Spock asked, and Soren nodded.

'Come on, kiddo,' Jim said. He wrapped an arm around Soren's shoulders and pulled him forward, leading the family of three through a small set of gates and up a neat garden path.

There were children screaming and laughing and adults walking around looking important. Soren craned his head every which way, trying to remember where everything was from the short tour he, Sa-mekh and Dad had taken a few weeks earlier. He really, _really _should have paid attention. Soren had an excellent memory when he actually focused, but as Sa-mekh always said, he was just like his dad.

Luckily Dad seemed to know where he was going, and Sa-mekh, too, because he pointed at a small building and they walked through the sliding glass door into an air-conditioned room. Soren shivered and pulled his jacket tighter around his body. Soren was only a quarter-Vulcan, but his biology was almost exactly like his sa-mekh's; he didn't do well in cold environments.

'You should have worn a thermal undershirt,' Sa-mekh frowned.

'I packed one in his backpack, and the teachers know,' Dad said, turning to face them. 'Wanna go get changed, Soren?'

'Um...' Soren chewed on his lip, and then shivered again. Finally, he nodded; he didn't want to get sick.

His dad took him to the bathroom and Soren pulled his uniform off to slip into the black thermal shirt that his parents had bought him a year ago. When they were done, Jim led Soren back to Spock, and Soren spotted him talking to a short lady wearing a nice suit, her red hair tied back in a neat ponytail.

'Jim, Soren, this is Mrs Komeda, one of the Third Grade teachers,' Spock said. He glanced back at Mrs Komeda. 'This is my husband, James Kirk, and our son, Soren Grayson Kirk.'

'It's a pleasure to meet you,' Mrs Komeda said. She shook Jim's hand and saluted Soren with the ta'al, which made Soren grin and return it. He didn't like being touched by strangers, so he liked the teacher already. 'I understand that this is Soren's first year attending school?' Mrs Komeda asked Soren's parents.

'Yeah,' Jim said, 'he's spent his entire life in space. We home-school him.'

'Well, his test results were truly impressive, Mr Kirk, Mr Grayson,' she said, and Dad smiled proudly while Sa-mekh inclined his head. 'I'm sure with a few days to adjust Soren will fit in perfectly at Triskele.'

'I hope so,' Jim said.

'Would you like to visit Soren's classroom?' Mrs Komeda asked. 'School starts in twenty minutes. The older years have a school assembly, but we prefer to get the younger ones settled into their classroom.'

Soren frowned- he wasn't a _young one_- but Dad and Sa-mekh nodded, so Soren had no choice but to follow his parents and teacher.

They chatted about grown up stuff that Soren barely paid attention to; he only had to answer a few questions about his favourite subjects and what hobbies he had. Mrs Komeda seemed surprised when Soren said that he was learning to speak Romulan and Klingon, and that he liked taking computers apart and re-building them so that they'd work better. But she kept smiling, so Soren figured that she still liked him.

The school was clean and still slightly chilly, but Soren felt okay now. He stuffed his hands into his jacket pockets as he walked, head twisting this way and that as he took in the artwork on the pale green walls. The floors were made of wood and his footsteps echoed, making Soren grin and step harder than he had to, just to hear the sound. The _Enterprise _was made of metal, and Soren had grown up to the _clang-clang-clang _of rushed footsteps as people ran all over the place. He missed the _Enterprise_.

Mrs Komeda finally led them to a long hallway with doors on either side. Soren craned his head and saw plaques beside each door labelling what the classroom was for; Grade One, Grade Two, Grade Three, etc. There seemed to be three or so classes for each grade, and Soren's was the sixth door down on the right.

'This is Grade Three, Class Two,' Mrs Komeda said as she led them inside. The room was large and filled with desks, plastic chairs, and cubbyholes where, according to Mrs Komeda, the students kept their stuff. Soren wanted to explore but his sa-mekh placed a hand on his shoulder, as always well aware of Soren's overwhelming need to poke his nose into everything.

Soren pouted but remained still as Mrs Komeda explained the Third Grade's schedule, and Dad and Sa-mekh talked about Soren's special needs; he was a vegetarian, he was allergic to most types of flowers like his Dad, and he wasn't to be touched due to his touch-telepathy. He also didn't need nap time, only twenty minutes to meditate.

Mrs Komeda smiled and nodded and said that school ended at 2:30pm, which was when Soren was allowed to go home. Suddenly it was time for class to start, and Soren felt his heart skip a beat. His earlier curiosity fled him as he realised that, for the first time in his life, his Dad and Sa-mekh wouldn't be just a comm-call away. Dad would be at Starfleet Academy teaching tactics classes and Sa-mekh would be guest lecturing at the University of California, San Francisco. They wouldn't just be a few floors away...

'Are you okay, Soren?' Jim asked, getting to his knees to look his son in the eye. Spock bent at the waist beside him, brown eyes meeting Soren's blue.

Soren bit his lip and mumbled, 'I just realised that you're gonna be gone.'

'Hey, little man, we're just a comm-call away,' Jim said. 'You call and we'll drop everything to come get you, okay?'

'But... but I'm a big boy now,' Soren said. 'I should be-'

'Hey, no,' Jim interrupted, squeezing Soren's shoulder. 'This is your first day at school. Living on-planet is different to living on a ship, Soren, we get that.'

'It will take some adjustment,' Spock added, 'and if you need more time, please tell us.'

Soren glanced between his parents, and then at Mrs Komeda, who was smiling, her face a mask of understanding. Soren took a deep breath and said, 'No, I'll be fine.'

'Are you sure?' Jim asked. Soren nodded. 'Okay, buddy. Just give us a call if you need us, okay?'

Soren nodded again and let Dad kiss his temple and hug him goodbye. Spock hugged him, too, and Soren realised that his fathers were gonna miss him a lot, because Spock rarely hugged Dad or Soren in public.

'Bye, Dad. Bye, Sa-mekh!' Soren called. Dad waved and Sa-mekh nodded, and Soren watched them exit the room and disappear down the hallway.

'Why don't you come and meet the other children, Soren?' Mrs Komeda said gently. 'We'll put your things away first.'

Soren nodded and Mrs Komeda showed him the cubby with his name on it; _Soren Grayson Kirk_. Soren smiled because he liked his full name; he'd been named after one of Surak's grandsons _and _his late grandmother. Soren put his stuff away but was told to take his PADD to his desk, which also had his name written on a little sticky note. Soren sat down and watched as other children filled the room. Most of them were taller than him and Soren hunched his shoulders a bit, staring at his desk as children chattered to each other and laughed.

Soren didn't look up until someone sat beside him. 'Hello.'

She was human and taller than Soren, with hair blonder than Dad's and eyes the colour of mint. Soren wasn't allowed to have mint, but sometimes Dad snuck him a tiny bit mixed with chocolate.

'Hello,' Soren said.

'Are you a Vulcan?' the girl asked, and Soren nodded. 'I thought so, my Daddy taught a Vulcan once,' the girl said. She held up her hand and frowned as she pushed some of her fingers together, and it took Soren a minute to realise that she was trying to preform the Ta'al.

'No, it's like this,' Soren said and showed her.

'Oh,' the girl said and grinned when she got it right. 'Cool! I'm Jay'ma, what's your name?'

'Soren Grayson Kirk,' he said, which made Jay'ma giggle.

'That's a long name,' she said. 'My full name's Jay'ma Reilly-Patterson, because when Daddy and Papa got married they, um... hyphanerted their name.'

'Hyphenated,' Soren corrected and tilted his head. 'You have two dads?' Jay'ma nodded, and Soren said, 'Me, too.'

'Really?' Jay'ma asked. 'That's awesome, 'cause last year a girl teased me 'cause I didn't have a mom, but I told her that two daddies was just the same.'

'She teased you?' Soren frowned. Why would anybody do that? Spock had warned him that some children could be mean, but Soren hadn't really believed him... Soren had never met any mean people.

'Yeah,' Jay'ma nodded. 'But she's in Class One now, so it doesn't matter. Hey, wanna meet Toreth? She's half-Romulan and her daddy defected 'cause he's like Vulcans, he doesn't like hurting people.'

'Okay,' Soren agreed and followed Jay'ma as she stood and led the way towards a group of three children. They were taller than Soren, too, but they smiled at him. There were two girls and one boy, and the boy was an Orion while one of the girls had thick black hair like Soren and pointed ears. Her bangs only just covered her eyebrows, but Soren could see that they were slanted.

'This is Soren and he has two daddies like me,' Jay'ma announced.

'You're weird,' the Orion boy told Jay'ma but waved at Soren. 'I'm Lindsey.'

'I'm Toreth,' the half-Romulan said, grinning brightly at Soren. 'Can you speak Vulcan?'

'I speak Vulcan fluently,' Soren said, earning wide-eyes from everyone but Toreth.

'I speak Romulan and Sa-mekh said that it's similar to Vulcan,' Toreth said. 'Maybe we could teach each other?'

Soren smiled and nodded, because he only new a few Romulan words. The language was just a bit different to Vulcan.

'I'm Mai,' the final girl said, 'can you teach me Vulcan?'

'Um... yes?' Soren tried.

'Yay!' Mai cheered. Lindsey laughed and Jay'ma giggled and Toreth rolled her eyes. Soren smiled. School didn't seem so bad.

'Come and sit,' Toreth said and patted the spot on the floor between her and Lindsey.

'But what about class?' Soren asked.

'We're always allowed an hour when we first get here to get to know each other,' Mai explained. 'Is this your first time at school or somethin'?'

'I live on a space ship,' Soren said, which earned him more wide-eyes and gasps.

'A space ship?' Lindsey breathed.

'Yeah,' Soren nodded. 'I live on the _Enterprise_. My dad's the Captain and my sa-mekh's the First Officer.

Lindsey's eyes bugged and he practically shrieked, 'You're dad's James T. Kirk?!'

Soren and Toreth both winced, their hearing more sensitive than Jay'ma's and Mai's.

'Your sa-mekh's S'chn T'gai Spock?' Toreth asked.

Soren nodded. 'In English his name's Spock Grayson, because humans can't pronounce our family name properly. Sometimes Dad messes it up, too.'

'Wow,' Toreth breathed. 'My sa-mekh says that Mr Spock's really smart.'

After that, Soren was ordered to detail what it was like living on a space ship and what aliens and adventures he'd seen and had. Soren did as he was told, enjoying the looks of envy and joy on his new friends' faces.

Soren liked school.

{oOo}

Jim was fidgeting, and Spock finally sighed audibly and reached over the clasp the blonde's hands. 'Jim, please stop.'

'What if he's hurt or scared or-'

'He would have called,' Spock interrupted. 'If he were truly in danger we would have felt it, ashaya.'

'He might not have called!' Jim shot back. 'He's too much like us, Spock! All stoic and pretending that he's fine when really he isn't!'

'Soren knows better than to hide any anxiety from us, Jim,' Spock stated calmly. 'He would have called if he was having difficulties. If he was, the school would have at least called. Please calm yourself.'

Jim grumbled under his breath but went mostly silent. He and Spock were sitting in the car waiting for the clock to tick over to 2:30pm. Spock's last lecture had been at midday, Jim's at one, and they'd met up for lunch before driving over to the Triskele School.

Jim swore that time had slowed down or just stopped all together, and only Spock's scowl kept him from leaping out of the car and rushing through the school to find his baby boy.

He couldn't believe how quickly Soren was growing. He'd only just turned six and already he was in Third Grade! He'd hopefully graduate before the _Enterprise _shipped out again, and by the time they returned to Earth Soren would be twelve.

Sometimes Jim wondered if he and Spock were doing the right thing. There were other kids on the ship, but Soren was essentially the only kid his age. He was fine now, but what about when he hit puberty? What about when he wanted friends he could see every day and a real house and a girlfriend or boyfriend? Selek and Sarek had both agreed to take Soren in if he wanted a life on-planet. Even Jim's mom, now retired, had said that she'd be happy to watch him while Jim and Spock were in space. But Jim couldn't bare the thought of not seeing his baby boy for five years. He'd most likely retire if Soren wanted a break from the stars.

'Jim?'

Jim shook his head and pushed his thoughts away. 'Yeah?' he asked, turning to his bondmate.

'I can feel your anxiety,' Spock said. 'What are you thinking about?'

Sighing, Jim said, 'Soren growing up.'

Spock smiled softly and once more reached out for Jim's hands. Only this time and squeezed gently instead of stopping Jim from fidgeting. 'Soren is only six, Jim. We both know that he is in no hurry to grow up. And, when he does, we will decide what is best for him together, as a family.'

Jim nodded. 'Yeah,' he repeated, than laughed, 'yeah, you're right. Gods, I'm an idiot sometimes.'

Spock's lips twitched. 'Indeed.'

'Hey!' Jim snapped, but he was grinning, and he could feel Spock's amusement trickling across their bond. Stupid sexy bastard.

Jim kinda fell into just staring at Spock's profile, the dark brown in his hair highlighted by the sun shining through the windows. One of Spock's eyebrows twitched upward and Jim grinned.

Before Jim could say anything- or make Spock blush, because he _loved _making Spock blush- the alarm on Jim's comm went off, signalling that it was _finally _2:30.

'Oh, thank God!' Jim shouted and leapt from the car. He heard Spock sigh but ignored him as he quickly walked up to the school, Spock easily keeping up behind him. It took way too long to get to Soren's classroom, and it _so _wasn't Jim's fault, despite getting himself lost. Spock had quickly found the room, though, and they were met with a gaggle of kids all being herded from the room by their parents.

Soren was one of the last to leave, and when he reached Jim and Spock he was talking to a little girl who looked Vulcan.

'Soren,' Jim said.

Soren beamed up at him. 'Hi, Dad, Sa-mekh!' Jim leaned down to hug his son tightly, and Soren grumbled and huffed but hugged him back. Spock simply nodded. 'Dad, Sa-mekh, this is Toreth,' Soren said, introducing the little girl.

The girl saulted with the Ta'al first, and then gave them the Romulan salute, making Jim's eyebrows shoot up.

'You are Romulan,' Spock stated.

'My sa-mekh is Romulan and my mother is human,' Toreth told them, 'but Sa-mekh chose to follow the Vulcan Surak's teachings when he left Romulus.'

'Fascinating,' Spock mused and Jim rolled his eyes. Now was _not _the time for his husband to question a little girl on her father.

'It's time to go, Soren, say goodbye to your friend,' Jim said.

Soren pouted but gave Toreth the Ta'al, and Toreth saluted in response, her little fist clutched to her chest. Both kids were grinning, and Jim was glad to see it.

'How was your day, kiddo?' Jim asked as he, Spock and Soren left the school.

'It was _great_!' Soren exploded. He then went into _great _detail about all the things he'd learned and the people he'd met and apparently Toreth was _so cool _because she meditated, too. Jim gaped while Spock's eyebrows climbed, but Soren didn't seem to care. He just chattered all the way back to the apartment, barely stopping when Spock told him to go put his things away and get changed.

When Soren finally stopped talking, rushing to his room to put some casual clothes on, Jim looked at his bondmate.

'So,' Jim said, 'Soren loves school.'

'Indeed,' Spock said. 'It seems that he has an easier time adjusting than either of us.'

Jim smiled softly and sat on the edge of the couch, Spock's eyes still on him. 'I had to put up with teachers pitying me because of my dad and kids wanting to hear stories of my hero father. You had a bunch of snotty Vulcan brats bullying you about your mom.'

Spock nodded slowly. Neither he or Jim had had easy childhoods. Spock, at least, had had two parents who had loved and cared for him, even if Sarek had never openly showed his affection. Jim had lost his father the day he was born, and his mother had escaped to the stars as soon as Jim could be left on his own.

Soren had a large extended family who worked diligently to make him happy. He had inherited the best of Spock and Jim; Spock's analytical mind, Jim's charisma and curiosity, Spock's ability to stay calm no matter what and Jim's ability to charm those around him into loving him.

'Soren will do well,' Spock decided.

'He's already got friends,' Jim said, awe in his voice as he flopped further back onto the sofa. 'I never really had friends.'

'Me either,' Spock agreed.

Soren chose that moment to rush back in, now talking about Lindsey, an Orion boy who could draw really well. He liked dragons, too, and Soren kept speaking about his new friends, only pausing briefly to ask his fathers if he could make his own snack.

'Maybe we should pull him out,' Jim mused.

'Why?' Spock questioned.

'He's never gonna shut up, Spock,' Jim said. 'You think _I _talk a lot? Look at your son!'

'He is clearly _your _son,' Spock said, amusement colouring his tone. 'I rarely speak unless necessary.'

'Yeah, right,' Jim snorted. 'You talk _all the time, _you dirty-'

'Jim!' Spock snapped, making Jim grin and poke his tongue out. A delicate green blush was working across Spock's cheeks, and it only got darker the longer Jim sent filthy images across their bond.

'Dad, Sa-mekh?' Soren called suddenly, and both Jim and Spock glanced up. Soren had managed to make himself a snack, which he was allowed to do as long as it didn't involve knives or liquids. Soren wasn't too good at pouring himself a drink without practically bathing himself in it.

'Yeah, Soren?' Jim asked.

'My friend Jay'ma has two daddies and she also has two brothers and she asked if _I _had any siblings but I said no and she asked why and I said I dunno so why don't I have any siblings?' Soren demanded in one long rush.

Jim spluttered and beside him Spock _actually _gaped.

'Uh...' Jim said.

'You see, Soren,' Spock began, but then cleared his throat and just... stopped.

'We, well,' Jim scratched at his head, 'ya know how your sa-mekh carried you, Soren?'

'_Yeah_,' Soren said, the "duh" implied but not stated. 'Sa-mekh's a Carrier and he said when I go through puberty I might be a Carrier, too, which means I could have babies if my t'hy'la's a boy.'

Jim nodded slowly. 'Right,' he said, 'well, you see, kiddo, you weren't exactly... planned.'

Soren frowned. 'What?'

'Sometimes couples plan on having children and actively try to fall pregnant,' Spock said slowly. 'Your father and I weren't actively trying for children, but when we discovered that we were having you we were happy.'

Soren stared at them. ''kay...' he said slowly, 'what's that got to do with me having siblings?'

Jim snorted a laugh and had to cover his mouth, ignoring the annoyance that flashed across their bond from Spock.

'We currently aren't trying to have more children, Soren,' Spock stated. 'Perhaps we will when you're older.'

'But why not _now_?' Soren demanded.

'Because,' Jim said.

'Because why?' Soren asked.

'Because... go to your room, that's why!' Jim stated.

'Jim,' Spock scowled.

'But I didn't do anything!' Soren cried.

Jim groaned and buried his face in his hands. He'd been wrong. School was the very worst thing to happen to Soren.

'Why can't you make me a sibling?' Soren demanded.

The _very _worst thing.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>I sorta managed to get the "first day" bit, but I'm not too sure who I wanna make Soren's t'hy'la yet. He's gonna have one 'cause it'll be adorable. Whether it'll be a guy or girl, a Vulcan or a human, I have no idea yet.

Thanks for all the prompts, guys, I love them and am planning on writing them all, promise!

Cheers,

{Dreamer}


	4. Chapter Four

**Prompt: **...Bet Jim is secretly congratulating Soren on a nice evasion of Chapel...

**From: Mindcraft Guardiansaiyan **on FFNet

* * *

><p>Soren was a very bright and intelligent young boy. He was charming, he was thoughtful, and he was polite. He greeted the entire crew by their surnames, always with their rank or the correct title. He was quick to apologise when he was in the wrong, and though he had his fair share of time outs due to his behaviour or refusal to stop playing when his parents wanted him to sleep, Soren was, generally, a really sweet kid.<p>

He was also Jim Kirk's son. And the crew knew that their Captain had a penchant for trouble, even when he wasn't actively looking for it. Jim Kirk could turn a routine science mission into a fight to the death. It happened often enough that Commander Spock either accompanied the Captain on the away missions he insisted on going on, or he sent two security officers to watch the Captain specifically.

Soren had inherited his human father's love for adventure, and his ability to cause mayhem and trouble wherever he went. It was why Soren was minded constantly. Captain Kirk and Commander Spock tried to be around whenever possible, but as the Captain and First Officer, their shifts usually overlapped, leading to one of the crew watching over a young Soren Grayson Kirk. Sometimes it was one of the bridge crew; Sulu or Chekov, even Uhura and McCoy. But most of the time they were working, too, so a yeoman or one of the scientists in Spock's department watched Soren.

And, when _they _were busy, it was up to the doctors and nurses working in medbay to watch Soren. Because who better to watch a hyperactive quarter-Vulcan child than people trained to save other people's lives?

That was what Christine Chapel and Carol Marcus often told themselves when faced with Soren's guilty expression and whatever mayhem he'd caused. McCoy laughed at them. Constantly. He knew better than to trust that sweet face. He'd known Jim longer than any of them, after all. He knew what a Kirk was capable of.

Currently Christine was trying to _find _Soren. No, she had not lost him. Soren, as he often did, had escaped. He liked computers like his sa-mekh, and he liked _hacking _computers like his father. All you had to do was turn your back for a _second_ and Soren was gone, feeding the computer his own algorithm to make pinpointing his location impossible. Christine couldn't even remember the amount of times she'd lost Soren over the past four years. As soon as the boy had learned to walk he'd been off, either wanting his parents or just wanting to explore. She was certain that Soren knew the _Enterprise _better than Captain Kirk and Lieutenant-Commander Scott.

Christine knew that Soren's other babysitters- _minders_, as Soren called them- had this problem. Only Mr Scott and Dr McCoy knew how to wrangle the young boy, and that was only because McCoy was scary and Mr Scott let Soren take things apart. Christine was currently topping the list of "Babysitters Soren Has Successfully Evaded", with Carol coming in a close second. Christine kind of hoped that, one day, Soren fell in love with a beautiful woman who managed to infuriate _him _this much. Karma.

Christine had checked the Captain and First Officer's quarters, followed by Soren's, and then Dr McCoy's. Sometimes Soren just missed his parents and his godfather; she'd often found him curled up on his fathers' bed, wrapped around one of their pillows with a frown on his face. He was a Vulcan despite his mostly human heritage, and Christine knew that he felt the seperation more than any human child would. It was why Spock sometimes took an entire day off every three weeks to just meditate with Soren. Captain Kirk did, too.

When there was no trace of Soren in the rooms, Christine comm'd Carol, Mr Scott and Mr Sulu while she continued her search; the canteen, the science labs, even the small room down in engineering where Soren and the Captain liked working together.

Nope, nope, nope.

'_I haven't seen the boy, lassie_,' Mr Scott said over the comm. '_Sure he isn't in his dads' quarters?_'

'No, I checked,' Christine sighed.

'_I can have a look-see at the computers, Nurse Chapel,_' Mr Scott said.

'He's using a new algorithm,' Christine huffed. Mr Scott had managed to crack Soren's very first algorithm, but now it took either Mr Spock or Captain Kirk to figure out his new ones. Soren was too clever for his own good.

'_I see_,' Mr Scott mused. '_Have yeh tried the bridge? I remember bein' there when Captain Kirk told Soren he'd be workin' a double shift. Maybe the lad missed his dad._'

'I'll go check,' Christine said. 'Thank you, Mr Scott.'

'_No worries, lass,_' Mr Scott replied. '_I'll comm if I catch wind o' him_.'

Mr Scott disconnected and Christine groaned, reaching up to rub at her forehead. Next time she was refusing; she'd just politely tell Captain Kirk and Mr Spock that she was too busy; she had people to take care of, people who _stayed where they were_. Nobody but the Captain and Commander ever tried to escape medbay, and that was because they didn't truly understand just how terrifying Doctor McCoy could be. Christine knew better. Christine was _smart_.

Sighing again, Christine decided to go to the bridge. If Soren wasn't there, Captain Kirk and Mr Spock could at least find him. All it would take was Mr Spock making a ship-wide announcement that Soren would be grounded indefinitely if he didn't go to the bridge within ten minutes. Soren always arrived out of breath and looking guilty.

It took Christine ten minutes to get to the bridge herself, and she scowled when she walked in to find Soren Grayson Kirk spinning around on the Captain's seat. The Captain was standing behind him, grinning, while Mr Spock watched from his station with a very small smile of his own. Most of the bridge crew was smiling, actually, as Soren shouted, 'Fire the photon torpedoes!'

'Aye, aye, Captain Grayson,' Mr Sulu chirped, making Soren beam.

'There you are!' Christine snapped before Soren could make any more orders. The boy immediately froze, eyes wide as he watched Christine approach. 'Have you been here the entire time?' Christine demanded when she reached him.

'Uh... yes?' Soren tried, offering her a bright smile.

Captain Kirk raised his brows and turned to Christine. 'Is there a problem, Nurse Chapel?'

'Yes,' Christine sighed, 'Soren left the medbay without permission.'

Silence fell, the bridge crew suddenly finding their stations fascinating, and Soren winced.

'Soren,' Mr Spock said, and the little Vulcan immediately bowed his head and started fidgeting. 'You told your father and myself that Nurse Chapel had sent you to us for lunch,' Mr Spock said as he stood and made his way over to his son and bondmate.

'Uh...' Soren hummed, 'well... I _might _have lied about that part, Sa-mekh.' He glanced up and offered his sa-mekh a shy smile. 'Just a little bit.'

Captain Kirk snorted and Mr Spock scowled at him, which made both the Captain and Soren hunch their shoulders. Christine hid a smile in her hand. "Like father, like son", as the saying went.

'Soren,' Mr Spock said, 'as we have told you _countless times_, you must remain with the people your father and I entrust your care to.'

'I know,' Soren mumbled.

'And yet you continue to break our rules,' Spock stated. 'You will be receiving a thirty minute time out after lunch.'

'What?' Soren spluttered. 'But Sa-mekh-'

'You broke the rules,' Spock interrupted, 'and as such, you will be punished.'

Soren turned to his father, blue eyes wide, and Captain Kirk shrugged a shoulder. 'Sorry, little man,' he said, 'you know what happens when you're naughty.'

The five-year-old pouted and kicked at the floor with his boot, but he didn't say a word.

'Now,' Mr Spock said, turning his attention on Christine. Christine blushed slightly. 'Soren, you will apologise to Nurse Chapel for making her chase after you around the _Enterprise_.'

Soren sighed but shuffled off the Captain's seat and over to Christine. He looked up at her and Christine felt her heart melt a little. Soren was going to break a lot of hearts when he got older, she just knew it.

'Nurse Chapel, please accept my apologies. I know that you just want to make sure that I'm safe and I ran away. I'm sorry.' He bowed slightly and Christine reached out to pat his shoulder.

'That's okay, Soren,' she said, 'just don't do it again.'

Soren nodded, but Christine recognised the glint in his eyes; he'd do it again and again and again until he was old enough to look after himself. Christine couldn't really blame him; he was a young boy and he wanted to play. Christine probably wasn't that much fun to a five-year-old.

'I won't,' Soren lied and Captain Kirk snickered again while Mr Spock pursed his lips.

'Lunch time!' Captain Kirk called. 'Everyone be back at your stations in an hour unless your shift has ended. See ya all then!'

He walked over to Soren and Christine and wrapped an arm around his son's shoulders while smiling brightly at the nurse.

'Sorry about him,' he said.

'It's fine, Captain,' Christine replied.

'Soren needs to learn to do as he is told,' Mr Spock said as he followed them from the bridge and into the turbolift.

'I won't do it again,' Soren spoke up, 'honest.'

'You said that last week,' Mr Spock said.

'_And _the week before that,' Captain Kirk added.

'And the week before that you said-'

'Okay!' Soren interrupted his sa-mekh, his cheeks turning green.

'You can't lie to us, little man,' the Captain smiled down at his son, 'I can never lie to your sa-mekh, he always knows. And you take after me.'

'No fair,' Soren grumbled. 'Sa-mekh, why can't I be more like you?'

'I ask myself that every day,' Mr Spock said.

The Captain burst into a fit of giggles, making Mr Spock smile slightly. Soren just looked confused and Christine shook her head at the weird yet highly adorable little family.

The turbolift stopped and the doors opened, revealing the familiar corridor that led to the mess. Captain Kirk and Mr Spock stepped out, the Captain pushing Soren along before turning to Christine.

'Would you like to join us, Nurse Chapel?' he asked.

Soren had his arms crossed, lips pouting and eyebrows furrowed. Christine smiled again and said, 'No, Captain, I have to get back to work. Thank you for the offer, though.'

'Fair enough,' the Captain said. 'And don't worry, we'll get Scotty to watch Soren this time. He comm'd and said he doesn't mind watching Soren until I finish my shift.'

'Yay!' Soren cheered. 'Dad, can Mr Scott and I build a dragon?'

'You may build a dragon when you come up with working blueprints,' Mr Spock said, making Soren pout again.

'_And _when you stop running off on your babysitters,' the Captain said.

'_Minders_,' Soren corrected.

Christine smiled and let the turbolift doors close, cutting off the bickering family. Her communicator chirped as she was heading back to the medbay, and Christine tapped the answer button.

'Yes?'

'_Have you found him yet?_' Carol asked.

'He was on the bridge,' Christine sighed.

Carol laughed. '_Of course he was_,' she said. '_I remember a young nurse who liked to wander up to the bridge just to see a certain Vulcan._'

'_Carol_,' Christine hissed, which just made the other woman laugh that much harder. 'I'm over Spock,' Christine said. 'He's happily married _and _bonded _and _has a son. Plus he and the Captain are adorable.'

'_They really are,_' Carol sighed. '_Anyway, do you have to watch Soren again, or are you free to join me in Science Lab 2? I think I might have found a vaccine that won't make Ensign Rogers swell up like a strawberry_.'

'I'm free,' Christine said and changed the turbolift's destination. 'I really don't want to go back to medbay. Dr McCoy will laugh at me again.'

Carol snickered. '_He's a bastard like that. Well come on, hurry up! I've got lunch waiting so we don't have to leave._'

'Sounds heavenly,' Christine sighed and ended the comm. She needed a break after chasing Soren all over the _Enterprise_.

{oOo}

'I didn't mean to,' Soren huffed as his sa-mekh placed a tray in front of him.

'Yes you did,' Spock said.

'You _really _did because I've just looked over the algorithm you used to get away from Chapel,' Jim said, waving his PADD at Soren. 'Getting better, kiddo.'

Soren beamed with pride and Spock glared at his bondmate, who threw him a wink.

'Eat your lunch, Soren, and then you will have your time out,' Spock said.

Soren pouted but knew better than to argue; if he argued, more minutes would be added to his time out, and he'd get less time with Mr Scott and whatever project the head engineer had come up with. Soren used his fork to separate his fries, fruit and vegetarian pasta; the replicators always seemed to like overlapping everything, and Soren preferred his food to be separate.

Unlike his dad, who shoved fries into his cheeseburger, more into his mouth, and than took a large bite of his burger, moaning as he chewed. Spock sighed and Soren giggled through a mouthful of strawberries.

'Jim,' Spock said.

'Sowwy,' Jim mumbled around his food, and then wilted when Spock glared. He swallowed thickly and said, 'Sorry, Spock.

'How can we expect Soren to follow our rules when you can't?' Spock questioned.

'Yeah!' Soren chimed in, and grinned when his dad tossed a hurt expression at him.

'I'm an adult; I'm allowed to break the rules when I think it's okay to,' Jim said, pointing a fry at Spock.

'Chewing with your mouth open is disgusting and impolite, Jim,' Spock said. 'Also, you could choke.'

'Yeah!' Soren repeated.

'Not helping, little man,' Jim said.

'Not trying to,' Soren replied, like his dad often did. Jim glowered at him and Soren just smiled as he ate another strawberry.

'Soren,' Spock said and folded his hands before his tray.

Soren glared down at his food.

'You know that your father and I are just worried,' Spock continued. 'We like to know where you are.'

'I know,' Soren sighed, 'I do, Sa-mekh, honest! I'm not trying to make you and Dad worry. I just get so _bored _with Nurse Chapel and Doctor Marcus. They won't let me do anything fun.'

'You seem to be alright when we leave you with Doctor McCoy and Mr Scott,' Spock said.

''Cause they're fun,' Soren said. 'Mr Scott shows me computers and how to build stuff. He lets me write new codes. And Uncle Bones lets me read Aunt Nyota's language books and teaches me stuff about medicine.'

'Nurse Chapel and Doctor Marcus don't let you do as you wish?' Spock asked, raising an eyebrow. Jim's own were furrowed.

'No,' Soren pouted. 'They make me sit in the corner with my usual school work. Which is only fun for, like, half-an-hour, Sa-mekh. I get it all done and then I'm bored and they tell me to read or stay still!'

'I see,' Spock mused, tapping his fingers against the table.

'So basically you take off 'cause you're bored,' Jim said, and Soren nodded. 'Okay, kiddo, that sounds like it's our fault, not yours.'

Soren's eyebrows shot up and he looked between his fathers. 'Really?'

Spock nodded. 'Yes. We should have made sure that you had enough work to keep you occupied. I will speak with Nurse Chapel and Doctor Marcus before we ask them to mind you again.'

'Promise?' Soren asked, eyes wide with hope.

'Yeah, kiddo,' Jim smiled at him, 'we promise.'

Soren's mood had picked up and he grinned as he went back to eating his strawberries, followed quickly by his fries and pasta. Jim and Spock watched while they picked at their own food. After lunch, and after Soren's time out, they dropped Soren off with Scotty and headed back to the bridge.

'It's our fault,' Jim sighed. 'All this time I thought Soren was just being a little bastard like me, but he was bored out of his skull.'

'I believe that it is a mixture between the two,' Spock said. 'Soren is bored, but he also enjoys getting away from Nurse Chapel and Doctor Marcus.'

'So... you don't think he'll stop?' Jim asked. 'Even if we leave him with a heap of stuff to do?'

'I think that finding him things to do will drastically decrease the amount of times Soren _does _escape,' Spock said. 'However, as I often say, he _is _your son. Soren will run no matter what we do because it is in his nature to do so.'

'Yeah,' Jim hummed, 'yeah, that's what I figured. But I thought I could maybe start out some rough sketches for that dragon robot he wants to build. Figuring the rest out will keep him busy for a while.'

Spock sighed through his nose and noted Jim grinning at him from the corner of his eye. 'Soren's quarters will soon be filled with robotic dragons,' he stated rather than asked.

'Oh, yeah,' Jim beamed and leaned over to peck Spock on the cheek. Spock narrowed his eyes. 'You know you love us,' Jim quipped and dragged Spock into the turbolift.

{oOo}

'Did you brush your teeth?' Jim asked as he sat on Soren's bed.

'Yeah,' Soren nodded. 'And I flossed, too, like Sa-mekh told me to.'

Jim smiled slightly. He often forgot to brush and floss. Luckily he had Spock to remind him. 'You okay, little man?' Jim asked and smoothed Soren's space-patterned duvet out.

Soren frowned. 'Yeah...?' he said slowly and Jim laughed.

'You're not in trouble, Soren. I just feel bad about leaving you with Nurse Chapel and Doctor Marcus when you were so bored.'

'It's okay,' Soren shrugged. 'You and Sa-mekh are busy.'

'But you miss us,' Jim said.

Soren hesitated before nodding. 'I'm okay on my own,' he said, 'but can I visit you more often? Even just five minutes would be nice, Dad. It makes my head stop hurting.'

Jim frowned. 'Your head hurts when you're away from us?'

'Sometimes,' Soren admitted. 'It's like my side of the bond is trying to find you but you're too far away. Sa-mekh explained that my telepathy isn't as strong as his, so the bridge is really far away for me.'

'Oh, kiddo, I'm sorry,' Jim sighed. He shifted up the bed to pull Soren into a hug, brushing the boy's black hair behind his pointed ears. 'I promise that I'll do better, okay? We'll have lunch together more often. Do you need both of us there?'

'I prefer both of you,' Soren said, voice muffled against Jim's t-shirt, 'but just one of you is enough.'

'Okay,' Jim said. 'Me and your sa-mekh will go over our schedules and make things better.'

'Okay,' Soren echoed and laid back down.

'Want a story?' Jim asked, and Soren shook his head. 'Alright, kiddo, sleep well.'

'You too, Dad,' Soren said, smiling at him.

Jim smiled back and bent down to press a kiss to Soren's cheek. He quickly glanced around and, when he was sure that Spock wasn't in the room, he whispered, 'How long did it take Nurse Chapel to find you?'

'Thirty-three minutes,' Soren admitted. 'My PADD alerted me when the computer was trying to pinpoint my location.'

'Wow,' Jim said. 'Good job, kiddo.' Soren grinned. 'Don't tell your sa-mekh I said that,' Jim added with a wink, which made Soren giggle. 'Night, little man.'

'Good night, Dad. Tell Sa-mekh I love him.'

'I will,' Jim promised. He threaded his fingers through Soren's hair one last time before standing and leaving the room. He entered his and Spock's room through the connecting bathroom and found Spock sitting in bed watching him. 'What?' Jim asked.

Spock narrowed his eyes.

'Somethin' wrong?' Jim questioned, trying to play casual.

'You are proud that Soren managed to escape Nurse Chapel,' Spock said.

'What?' Jim laughed. 'No, no _way_. It was wrong and Soren was bad and we're totally gonna punish him if he does it again.'

Spock just stared at him and Jim fidgeted.

'Jim,' was all Spock said.

'I'm just proud, okay?' Jim near-shouted. 'He's growing up so fast and he'd totally be an awesome captain one day! Or a spy! Or a-'

'Jim,' Spock interrupted and slid from the bed. Jim swallowed thickly. 'Soren was already punished for his behaviour today,' Spock said as he approached his bondmate.

'Uh... y-yeah,' Jim said.

Spock tilted his head. 'You have yet to be punished,' he said.

'N-No,' Jim stuttered again.

Spock's eyes roamed over Jim's body slowly before meeting his gaze. His lips quirked upward and Jim felt a pulse of _want _sear across their bond. Jim shivered and licked his lips.

'_Oh_,' he breathed just as Spock fisted a hand in his shirt and dragged him forward. 'I'm _totally _down with that kind of punishment.'

Spock shut him up with a kiss.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>This turned out a bit more family orientated than I'd originally planned... I tried! At least I tried.

{Dreamer}


End file.
